Political strategic level
Yesterday, many media outlets quoted the New York Times as reporting that US officials have reviewed new intelligence that suggests that a pro-Ukrainian group is responsible for the Nord Stream pipeline bombing in the Baltic Sea. However, some US intelligence allegedly told them, and they passed it on to the newspaper, that no evidence had been found that the government of Kyiv had been involved in the September 2022 attack, which the US and NATO have called an 'act of sabotage'. During the attack, three of the four gas pipes were irreparably damaged, the Russian-owned Gazprom company later claimed.
Moscow blamed Ukraine's Western backers and called for an independent investigation by the UN Security Council. The West unofficially blamed Moscow, while conspiracy theorists claimed that the US had blown up the pipelines. Neither side, of course, as now, has produced any evidence.
The New York Times, allegedly citing US officials, said that there was no evidence that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky or his administration was involved in the operation, or that the perpetrators were acting at the behest of any Ukrainian government officials.
In response to the information that has emerged, Mr Podoliak, a senior adviser to Mr Zelensky, told Reuters that the Kyiv government had "absolutely no involvement" in the sabotage and had no knowledge of what had happened.
Russia's deputy ambassador to the United Nations, Dmitry Polyanskiy, immediately barked that the report proved that Moscow's attempt to influence the Security Council to launch an independent investigation was "very timely" and that it would demand a vote on the draft resolution by the end of March.
However, the newspaper mentions that the intelligence report claims that Ukrainian or Russian citizens, or a combination of both, who do not support Russian President Vladimir Putin, may have been responsible for the pipeline bombing, but does not specify who may have been part of the group, who directed the operation or who paid for it.
Finally, it concludes that "US officials have refused to disclose the nature of the intelligence, how it was obtained, or any information about the veracity of the evidence. They stated that no firm conclusions were available".
A simple analysis of the text leads us to the conclusion that it was very necessary for someone to set about creating a bubble about a mysterious pro-Ukrainian group that could possibly have done something. All such speculation, without any evidence of officials claiming 'intelligence' that provides data on a 'report' that says 'something', is possible for three reasons: the Kremlin needs help in diverting attention from the military action in Ukraine and in escalating the issue at the UNSC, the New York Times is trying to maintain its dwindling readership, or the US has a goal to show that it is a real armed force against Putin and the Kremlin regime, which the war criminals in Moscow need to start fearing.
We, on the other hand, continue to maintain that Nord Stream was blown up by Russian citizens, with or without the knowledge of the Kremlin.
Yesterday, US President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron once again discussed future aid to Ukraine. According to a White House statement, the leaders discussed their commitment to continue supplying arms to Ukraine and to "hold Russia accountable for its aggression". They also talked about joint efforts to address the challenges that China "poses to the rules-based international order".
At the time, John Kirby, Strategic Liaison Coordinator of the US National Security Council, in response to a reporter's question on why the US should support Ukraine, gave the following reasons. "This is a war for independence, for the legitimate right to exist as a country. If any nation on the planet understands that, it is the United States of America, because we have had to fight for our independence at least twice... And we needed foreign help," the Voice of America quoted him as saying.
He also drew attention to the impact of the war in Ukraine on the world economy. "For those who might think that the war in Ukraine is so far away that it does not affect them, I would ask them to remember the summer and the high gas prices ... look at the overall economic impact [of Russia's actions], the insecurity [caused by the war] in the global south and in middle-income countries, the food shortages, the energy insecurity", he said.
Mr Kirby believes that if leaders "fold their arms" and allow Putin to occupy Ukraine, he will not stop. "What will his next target be? And how much more money and blood, especially American blood, will it take?" - he asked rhetorically.
Unfortunately, a large part of the West sees the war in Ukraine only as a threat to its furniture and its six-pack. The threat to property, and not Ukrainian blood, is the real reason why the average satiated Westerner still refuses to support Ukraine's fight against the aggressor and terrorist.
The new UN human rights chief said on Tuesday that his office had opened 'channels of communication' to help follow up on concerns about minorities in China, including the Muslim Uighurs and Tibetans. But this has not fulfilled activists' hopes of sending a tougher message to Beijing.
High Commissioner for Human Rights Türk noted that the UN rights office had "documented serious concerns", such as arbitrary detentions and the separation of families in China, and called for "concrete follow-up action". He also expressed concern about the impact of the National Security Law on Hong Kong, which has stifled its pro-democracy movement.
It is no secret that the UN is a concern-raising organisation whose members are paid handsomely for voicing their concerns and listening to them.
Yesterday, more than a million demonstrators staged new protests and strikes in French towns and cities against the government's plan to raise the retirement age to 64. Trade unions have called for more protests this weekend and warned that the situation could become "explosive". The unions are demanding that the government "immediately withdraw its project".
Georgian authorities on Tuesday used tear gas and water cannons outside the parliament building in the capital against protesters opposing a proposed law restricting press freedom. The law, which was initially approved, requires media outlets and non-governmental organisations that receive more than 20% of their funding from foreign sources to register as "agents of foreign influence". International organisations have expressed concern about the draft law, saying that it contradicts Georgia's democratic development.
Georgia is falling deeper and deeper into the hole dug by the Kremlin.
A delegation from the Hungarian Parliament said on Tuesday, after a meeting with the Speaker of the Swedish Parliament, which the Hungarian ruling party described as a "political dispute", that it supported Sweden's bid to become a member of NATO. Some Hungarian legislators have expressed doubts about accepting Sweden's and Finland's applications for NATO membership, pointing to what they call "the blatant lies of Stockholm and Helsinki" about the state of Hungarian democracy. However, the Hungarian delegation indicated on Tuesday that the parliament in Budapest will eventually ratify Sweden's application for NATO membership.
Operational level
The Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Valeriy Zaluzhnyj, discussed with his counterparts from partner countries the situation in Bakhmut and the supply of arms and ammunition to the Ukrainian Armed Forces. In a Telegram message, Mr Zaluzhnyy called the meeting "very important for Ukraine".
He briefed his NATO colleagues on the situation on the battlefield. He focused on the eastern flank, in particular on the developments in Bakhmut. "The supply of military assistance in the form of arms and ammunition was discussed in equal detail. The issues of strengthening air defence and the supply of long-range weapons remain very important," Zaluzhnyj stressed.
Meanwhile, the Canadian government is negotiating the delivery of hundreds of Canadian-made high-tech drones to Ukraine. This was reported by the National Post, citing a source. According to them, back in July, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Yulia Sviridenko requested 300 Teledyne Flir R70 Skyranger drones from Canada. "These Canadian systems will be put into operation quickly and efficiently", she is quoted as saying.
The cost of sending the drones to Canada will be around 150 million dollars. They are equipped with thermal imaging cameras and can also detect chemical weapons and intercept radio signals. The latter allow the drone to locate enemy phones and identify people.
The US military is considering equipping Ukrainian MiGs with Western air-to-air missiles. "Sources told Politico that they are talking about AIM-120 medium-range missiles, designed to be launched from Western fighter jets such as the US F-16. If successful, the integration of the AIM-120 into MiGs would be the first time the US would provide the capability to launch air-to-air missiles from Soviet-built planes.
It is noted that the integration process is fraught with difficulties, as the missile must not only be mounted on the aircraft, but must also "talk" to the aircraft's radar. The main problem is that US and Soviet technology is too different.
Tactical level
The occupiers are concentrating their efforts on offensive operations on the Kupyansk, Lyman, Bakhmut, Avdiivka and Shakhtarsk axes. Unsuccessful offensives continue in the Donetsk oblasts of Oryhovo-Vasilyivka, Dubovo-Vasilyivka, Bakhmut, Kamyanka, Avdiivka and Maryinka.
Over the past day, the defenders have repelled more than 100 attacks by hordes on the designated axes.
The attackers carried out 24 air strikes and one missile strike. The enemy used a Shahed-136 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) for air strikes. It was shot down. The occupiers also launched more than 60 attacks with volley fire systems.
In the village of Ulyanivka in the Vasilkovsky district of the temporarily occupied territory of Zaporizhzhya region, grain harvests from neighbouring farms and farms in the district are being transported to a local hangar on the orders of the so-called "Russian occupation administration". The occupiers simply confiscate the grain under the pretext of buying it at greatly reduced prices.
The Ukrainian air force struck 7 times a day against enemy concentrations. Rocket and artillery strikes hit the Buk-M1-2 anti-aircraft missile system, 5 enemy concentration areas, 3 fuel and lubricant depots, and the Zoopark radar reconnaissance and control system.
Belarus detained several people in connection with what it said was an attempted sabotage at a Belarusian airfield, according to anti-president Alexander Lukashenko. Last month, Belarusian anti-government activists claimed that they had blown up a Russian military aircraft, a Beriev A-50 surveillance plane, in a drone strike, but Moscow and Minsk denied this claim.
"More than 20 accomplices have been detained so far and are in Belarus. The rest are in hiding", said the impostor President Lukashenko. He identified the main culprit as a dual Ukrainian-Russian national.
On the evening of 7 March, powerful explosions broke out at the headquarters of the Russian occupiers in Melitopol. Local media circulated a photo showing the moment of the explosion in the area where the Russian terrorists were based.
A Moscow court sentenced Dmitry Ivanov, 23, a student activist, to 8.5 years in prison for posts on social media criticising Russia's war in Ukraine.
Yesterday it was established that the Ukrainian prisoner of war shot by Russian war criminals in violation of the Geneva Conventions was probably Tymofiy Shadur, a member of the 30th Mechanised Brigade.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres arrived in Kiev today.
Pictured here is the unkillable Russian Ka-52 "alligator", or rather what is left of it.
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